What can be deleted on Android to free up space: safe and risky methods

Is your smartphone memory full to capacity, and the “Not enough space” notification appears every time you try to install a new application or take a photo? This problem is familiar to most users of Androiddevices, especially with budget models of 32–64 GB. But even owners of flagships with 256 GB sooner or later face a lack of free space.

Unlike iOSwhere the system strictly controls memory allocation, Android gives more freedom - and at the same time requires more attention to “cleaning”. Application cache accumulates here, traces of deleted files remain, and some system processes take up gigabytes without the user noticing. Good news: up to 30-50% of the occupied space can be freed up without losing important dataif you know what exactly to delete and in what order.

In this article we will look at all the possible methods - from the obvious (deleting unnecessary applications) to the hidden (cleaning up folders /data/app-lib or cache reset Dalvik). We’ll also find out which files to touch impossibleso as not to break the system. Let's start with the safest and end with methods for experienced users.

1. Removing unnecessary applications and games

The most obvious, but often ignored method. According to statistics, the average user installs 20–30 applications per month, but actively uses only 5–7. The rest remain “dead weight”, taking up from 50 MB (messengers) to several gigabytes (games like Genshin Impact or Call of Duty Mobile).

How to find and remove unnecessary ones:

• 📱 Open Settings → Applications and sort the list by size (option “Sort → Size”)
• 🎮 Pay attention to games - they often weigh 1-3 GB even after uninstallation (cached data remains).
• 🔍 Check applications that have not been used for more than 3 months (there is an item in the menu of each application “Last used”)
• 🚫 Remove pre-installed applications (bloatware) if they are not needed. This may require ADB or rights root.

Pre-installed applications (for example, Samsung Knox, Bixby, Google Duo) often cannot be removed using standard means, but they can be disabled:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → [Select an application].
2. Click “Disable” (if the button is active).
3. Confirm the action - the application will disappear from the menu and stop updating.

⚠️ Attention: Do not delete system applications with names com.android., com.google.android. or android.process.* - this may lead to malfunctions of the phone. If you are not sure, check the name in Google before deleting.

2. Clearing the application and system cache

Caches are temporary files that applications create to speed up work. For example, Instagram caches stories, YouTube video previews, and browsers save copies of visited pages. gigabyte, although it can be safely deleted without data loss.

How to clear the cache:

• 🧹 For a single application: Settings → Applications → [Select an application] → Storage → Clear cache.
• 🗑️ For all applications at once: Settings → Storage → Cache data → Clear (on some firmware the path may differ).
• 🌐 In the browser: open settings Chrome/Firefox and select “Clear history” → “Cookies and site data.”

The system cache (Dalvik-cache) is cleared through recovery mode (recovery mode). recovery

1. Turn off the device.
2. Hold down the combination of buttons to enter recovery (for example, Power + Volume Up for Samsung or Xiaomi).
3. Select item Wipe cache partition (use the volume buttons for navigation).
4. Confirm the action and reboot the phone.

⚠️ Attention: Do not confuse Wipe cache partition with Wipe data/factory reset —the second point will reset the phone to factory settings and delete all your data!

Delete the cache of unused applications

Clear the browser cache

Check the Downloads folder for unnecessary files

Reboot the phone after cleaning-->

3. Removing duplicates and unnecessary media files

Photos and videos are the main “eaters” of memory. According to Google Photos, the average user takes about 1,500 pictures per year, and video in 4K can weigh up to 500 MB per minute of recording. up to 20% of files are duplicates, screenshots or bad frames that can be safely deleted.

How to find and delete unnecessary ones:

• 📸 Use the built-in gallery: many firmwares (for example, MIUI or One UI) have a duplicate search function.
• 🔍 Install specialized applications:
  • Files by Google - shows large files and unused screenshots.
  • Duplicate Files Fixer - searches for duplicate photos, videos and documents.
  • SD Maid - analyzes junk files (requires root for a full scan).
• 🗑️ Check the folders:
  • DCIM/.thumbnails — photo thumbnails (can be deleted).
  • Pictures/Screenshots — screenshots older than 30 days.
  • Downloads — downloaded files that are no longer needed.

To automate the process, set up automatic cleaning automatic cleaning Google Photos:

1. Open the application Google Photos.
2. Go to Settings → Storage management.
3. Enable the "Device Cleanup" option - it will offer to delete files that are already backed up in the cloud.

File type	Average size	Is it possible delete?	How to clear
Duplicate photos	5–50 MB per file	Yes	Applications Duplicate Files Fixer or Files by Google
Screenshots older than 30 days	1–3 MB per file	Yes	Manually or via Google Files
Video in 4K/60 FPS	300–500 MB per minute	Partially	Transfer to the cloud or PC, leaving only important ones
Camera cache (DCIM/.thumbnails)	100–300 MB	Yes	Delete the folder manually (it will be restored automatically)

4. Cleaning downloads and temporary files

The Downloads folder (or “Downloads”) is a storehouse of unnecessary files: old APKfiles, documents, archives, music and videos that were downloaded “for later” and forgotten. Often there are duplicate files that have already been transferred to other folders.

How to clean up:

1. Open any file manager (for example, Files by Google, Solid Explorer or the built-in Explorer).
2. Go to the folder /storage/emulated/0/Download (or Internal memory/Downloads).
3. Sort files by date or size and delete unnecessary ones.

Pay special attention to files with extensions:

• 📄 .apk — application installation files (can be deleted after installation).
• 📦 .zip/.rar — archives that have already been unpacked.
• 🎵 .mp3/.m4a — music that can be streamed instead of storing.
• 📺 .mp4/.mkv —videos that have already been watched.

Also check the folders:

• /Android/data — application data is stored here (for example, downloaded maps for Google Maps or cache Telegram). Some folders can be deleted, but this will reset the settings in the corresponding application.
• /Android/obb — game files (for example, additional resources for PUBG Mobile or Asphalt 9). Delete only if you deleted the game itself.

⚠️ Attention: Do not delete files in the /Android/data or /Android/obbfolders unless you are sure that they belong to the deleted applications. This may break the operation of installed apps.

5. Removing system garbage and application remnants

Even after uninstallation, applications often leave behind “tails”: folders in /Android/data, settings files, log files. Over time, this garbage takes up hundreds of megabytes. To remove it, you will need special tools or rootaccess.

Cleaning methods:

• 🧹 SD Maid (requires root): scans the system for remnants of deleted applications, empty folders and unnecessary database files.
• 🔍 Files by Google: in the "Cleaning" section shows "Residual files" (left folders and cache).
• 🛠️ Manual cleaning (for experienced):
  • Folder /data/app-lib — libraries of deleted applications.
  • Folder /data/dalvik-cache - cache Dalvik (cleared via recovery).
  • Files .log i .tmp in the root directory.

To clean without root:

1. Install Files by Google from Play Market.
2. Open the “Cleaning” section → “Residual files”.
3. Select unnecessary folders and click “Clean”.

If you have rootaccess, use the command to search for large files:

adb shell
su
du -ah /data | sort -rh | head -n 20

This command will show the 20 largest files and folders in the section /data.

What is Dalvik-cache and can it be deleted?

Dalvik-cache - these are optimized versions of applications for a virtual machine Dalvik (used in older versions of Android). In modern devices (Android 5.0+) it has been replaced ART, but the folder /data/dalvik-cache may remain. It can be cleared via recovery mode (item Wipe Dalvik Cache), but this will temporarily slow down the phone, since the system will have to rebuild the cache again.

6. Transferring data to a memory card or cloud

If there is a catastrophic lack of space on the internal memory and you don’t want to delete anything, transfer the files to memory card (if supported) or to cloud storage. This will not free up memory completely, but it will help free up 5–10 GB for critical tasks.

How to transfer data:

• 📁 To a memory card:
  • Use file manager for moving photos, videos and music.
  • You can make a memory card Android 6.0+ can you make a memory card internal storage (formatted as Adoptable Storage), but this will slow down its operation.
• ☁️ To the cloud:
  • Google Photos - automatically uploads photos and videos (up to 15 GB for free).
  • Yandex Disk or Mail.ru Cloud - give 10-100 GB free upon registration.
  • Telegram —you can upload files up to 2 GB to “Saved messages.”

For automatic transfer:

1. In Google Photos turn on “Backup and synchronization.”
2. In the camera settings (Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei) select saving photos to the default memory card.
3. Use FolderSync to automatically synchronize folders with the cloud.

⚠️ Attention: If you use the memory card as internal storage (Adoptable Storage), it cannot be removed without losing data. This can also slow down the phone, since the read/write speed of microSD is lower than that of the built-in memory.

7. Reset to factory settings (last chance)

If all the previous methods did not help, and there is critically little free space (less than 1 GB), there remains full reset (factory reset). This will erase all data, apps and settings, returning the phone to its out-of-the-box state. The method is radical, but effective - it frees up to 70–80% of memory.

How to reset:

1. Save important data (contacts, photos, messages) to the cloud or on your PC.
2. Go in Settings → System → Reset → Delete all data.
3. Confirm the action and wait for the reboot (takes 5-15 minutes).

After reset:

• 🔄 Recover only the necessary data (do not return everything!).
• 🚫 Do not install applications that you do not use.
• 📊 Check the used space regularly (once a month).

⚠️ Attention: On some devices (for example, Xiaomi or Realme) reset does not delete files in the DCIM and Downloadsfolders. After resetting, check them manually.

8. Additional methods for advanced users

If you're ready to dive deeper into settings, here are some advanced methods:

• 🔧 Disable memory-consuming features:
  • Disable live wallpaper —they consume up to 200 MB.
  • Reduce the number widgets on the main screen.
  • Disable automatic update of applications in Play Market.
• 🛠️ Manual removal of system applets (requires root):
  • Delete /system/app or /system/priv-app unnecessary applications (for example, Google Play Musicif not you use).
  • Use Titanium Backup to freeze system processes.
• 📡 Optimization ART/Dalvik:
  • B Android 5.0+ can be manually cleaned cache ART via adb shell cmd package bg-dexopt-job.

For devices with rootaccess, the following commands are useful:

# Search for files >100 MB in size
find /storage -type f -size +100M -exec ls -lh {} \;

Delete empty folders
find /sdcard -type d -empty -delete

⚠️ Attention: Manual intervention in system folders (/system, /vendor) can lead to brick (turning the phone into a “brick”). Make a backup copy through TWRP or OrangeFox before any changes.

Frequently asked questions

Is it possible to delete the Android folder on a memory card?

No, this is a folder with application data (for example, downloaded maps for Google Maps or cache games). to app malfunctions. If you need to free up space, transfer files to your PC or delete unnecessary games.

Why is the space not freed up after deleting files?

This may be due to:

• Cache that has not yet been updated (restart the phone).
• Files occupied by system processes (for example, .nomedia or .thumbnails).
• Errors in calculating free space (check through DiskUsage or SD Maid).

How to clear memory on Android without root?

Without root you can:

• Delete cache and application data through settings.
• Use Files by Google to search for garbage.
• Transfer files to a memory card or to cloud.
• Delete duplicate photos and unnecessary APKfiles.

For deep cleaning (for example, removing application remnants) root required.

What applications can be deleted without consequences?

Safely delete:

• Social networks if you use the web version.
• Games that have not been played for a long time.
• Pre-installed applications from the manufacturer (for example, Samsung Internet, Mi Video), if they duplicate functions.
• Applications that have not been used for more than 3 months.

Do not delete:

• System services (com.android.phone, com.google.android.gsf).
• Applications related to the camera or calls.

Is it worth using applications like Clean Master?

No, most “cleaners” (for example, Clean Master, CCleaner) are not only ineffective, but can also:

• Delete useful files.
• Show false warnings about the “critical state” of memory.
• Waste battery power and traffic on background work.

It is better to use built-in tools (Files by Google) or manual cleaning.